Tag Archives: flats

Thats a wrap

redfish, guide, fly fishing, port aransas, corpus christi, rockport, flats, saltwater

Redfish Swim

Ladies and Gentlemen… its a wrap folks!

This year of 2016 has been fantastic with many wonderful days sight-casting redfish of all manners. We got to see tons of fish!

They were laid up, crawling, cruising, floating, tailing, schooled up and blitzing in schools down the grassy shorelines, crushing any and all of the helpless baits that were so abundant this year. Over clean hard sand, in clear water brown bottomed creeks, out among the turtle grass patches and tickling their chins over the fine-haired shoal grass.

backing redfish

By my observations, fish numbers are up, mostly thanks to all the rain Texas has received in the past couple years. This benefits the bottom of the food chain and over time the bounty moves up. 2017 will be another chart topper!

Many thanks to all the Guests who fished with me this year, every time, every one of us got in on some great days, and mad props to those who stuck it out during the more difficult days. The unpredictable weather is exciting and the Number 1 reason why it is important to learn a wide range of techniques in casting. We all still managed to get our hands fishy and learned quite a lot in the process adapting our equipment and techniques to get in front of the fish.

redfish, guide, fly fishing, port aransas, corpus christi, rockport, flats, saltwater

Admiration of the Redfish

There were many first timers as well who got their first taste of saltwater fly fishing, and I know for certain that they are just as hooked as the fish they finally caught! I cherish these moments because then, even a small fish is GIANT!

Looking forward to 2017, the early months in the year can have exceptional opportunities to sight cast. Timing with the weather is easier in Jan/Feb/March so don’t hesitate to call and get on the books to reserve your date. This past Jan/Feb/March was incredible and if you ask me, its quite the best time to fish.

Merry Christmas to you all, and a Happy New Year! Here is a little video from when the fish were blitzing down the grassy shorelines. Tight Lines and Sweet Fishy Dreams!

 

 

The ditch less travelled

Fly fishing Port Aransas Rockport redfish guide

Hard earned but… Oh! How sweet it is!

When the (super high) tides throw you a curve ball simply bob n’ weave and with a little luck your fly line floats like a butterfly and your hook stings like a bee…. just not in your bare foot or in the cover, but in the mouth of a worthily scaled foe. Enter Mr. Redfish,  stage right, or maybe left, but most usually, behind you. There! 2 o’clock! 25ft and closing!

Brent and Mike did just that, stalking sly red drum way back in the back of the furtherest back lake where the ditch less travelled is half the width of the boat. It took some hard earned team work but Brent and Mike earned their Level 1 salt badge.

Red drum fly fishing Port aransas

Brent’s first redfish with heart shaped spot

The clouds made a real challenge for their eyes and eventually they were rewarded with their first redfish. Patience, endurance, good humor and attitude paired with an ability to climb a steep learning curve is what made their trip a great experience and ultimately successful.

I have a couple dates open this week. Give me a call to get on board. There are plenty more redfish out there and we are still seeing a handful of 30+ inch bull reds up in the skinny!
-Capt Ken 361-500-2552

Mangrove Lake Redfish

Going thru some client emails I found a sweet little video that a client put together very nicely of a fantastic day in May sight casting redfish about my old skiff, the 16ft Ankona Shadowcast. Matt had a quick learning curve and within short order was nailing fish left and right. I believe we got 9 fish to hand that day and missed at least 5 others. The big ones escaped without much damage from us but beware, we’ve got our eyes on you again now during the FALL RUN GOING ON NOW!!!

 

https://vimeo.com/164157445

Red Summers

redfish drum fly fishing port aransas

Sunrise Tailing Redfish

Hot hot hot! Thats the easiest way to describe dead of summer-time along the Texas Coast… If you are fishing gentlemen’s hours this time of year chances are you are seeing double from the potential heat-stroke, but now is when the old saying “early bird gets the worm” hold the most truth.

We have been pounding on some fine redfish early in the mornings with their tails up, and they are eating just about anything you throw at them so long as you don’t bomb the cast.

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Do you see it too?

Delicate presentations are key, as most shots are coming at close range. By 9am though most of the tailing has stopped but then the sun is high enough to spot these fish in the water.

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Topwater Redfish at Sunrise

I have been telling everyone lately, I have found 3 situations where it is imperative that we wade fish and will list them for you hear. These are also 3 excuses to buy a good pair of wading boots!

 

 

  1. The fish are in such skinny water that the boat might bump or drag the bottom occasionally, and the sound that makes will scare the fish, even if it doesn’t send them bolting away it can give them lockjaw.

    redfish fly fishing port aransas texas coast gulf mexico

    Windy Fishy

  2. The winds are honking (usually any winds over 15mph). This makes it difficult to fish slow enough. If the boat is moving too fast along the flat then there isn’t enough time to spot the fish and the fish doesn’t have much time to reveal themselves to us, which limits the number of shots you get at each fish. In the afternoons I prefer to work into the wind with the sun to our backs that way we can move super slow along the flat and that gives us more time to find that well camouflaged fish in the grass.
  3.  This is the big one… when there are so many fish in one tight area, the boat itself can spook the group of fish, interrupting their feeding pattern and behavior. Stopping the boat simply isn’t an option because the boat creates noise and sometimes this cannot be helped. It is then best to park the boat off to the side, preferably behind some cover like cord grass to obscure it and then wade into the fishy area like a ninja, moving painfully slow.
    cord grass port aransas texas gulf coast fly fishing

    Cord Grass Galore

    August is a very good month for chances at BIG redfish in our area as those larger redfish are moving into the shallows to gorge themselves to get ready for the spawn. The boat records have been both set and broken during this month so I encourage you, if you want your chance at a sight-casted redfish over 30inches in super clear shallow water, this is the time to get on the books. Give me a call ASAP to secure your reservation! Keep your hooks sharp, Capt Ken 361-500-2552

Barefoot and afraid

Redfish in the sticks

Redfish in the sticks

Afriad of the tides changing. Afriad of breaking off all these fish in the sticks. We switched up to 25lb tippet and went barefoot wading today while out scouting for the next group of charters. Got on some sick action with countless shots at countless fish, none of them under 23 inches and all of them in 16 inches of water or less.

Tomorrow is open if anyone wants to get in on board last minute. Just give me a call and leave a message and I will return your call after 8pm tonight.

 

Quality or Quantity

fly fishing, redfish, speckled trout, trophy, beavertail, strike, first cast, port aransas, saltwater, guide, charter, aransas, pass, rockport, corpus christi

First cast of an epic day

I am beginning to love the effects El Nino is having on our fishing! The abundance of fresh water from the heavens last year has made for a super abundance of food for the fishes! The fishing has been way above average lately not counting against what madness went down in February.

Considering the quality and quantity of fish that I am finding… take your pick! Do you want shots at good numbers of fish or a few good shots at quality fish of several species? And even despite inclement weather, some fabulous fishing is occurring for dedicated anglers.

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Gator trout pre-release

Fortunately, the new Beavertail Skiff is the driest ride I have ever had on a flats skiff and even in rough conditions this boat performs very well.

By any measure this new boat goes everywhere the old boat could get. That’s the most thrilling part! Or, well, maybe seeing more than a dozen trophy trout in one day is a little more thrilling but nailing a 28-inch below average trout really got the blood pumping. Our imaginations have soared for the week following and still continues to grow and call us back to the water.fly fishing, redfish, speckled trout, trophy, beavertail, strike, first cast, port aransas, saltwater, guide, charter, aransas, pass, rockport, corpus christi, topwater,

I have been running into a real mecca of giant trout and even on the days we couldn’t sight cast we got them dialed in on topwater flies. Some glorious fish have been revealing themselves putting on the feed-bag, and even sometimes when the angler least expects it. Lessons are learned by all in situations like that… “Never take your eye off the fly!”

fly fishing, redfish, speckled trout, trophy, beavertail, strike, first cast, port aransas, saltwater, guide, charter, aransas, pass, rockport, shrimp fly, corpus christi

chartreuse and black fly

The redfish are also hungry and some 20+ fish schools of oversized redfish are begging to be caught. Chartreuse shrimp and mullet flies are my go to color and choice flies of all time regardless of light conditions. Then I go to blue crab flies (bigger is better if you ask me) and don’t forget to have some plain white topwater flies ready to zing! The majority of the black drum have been a little scarce from my normal operating areas the last week but those that I did find were close to 10lbs and have even found at least 1 drum per trip between 25-40lbs. Ya Ya!

Here also is a little video of my good buddy Bob playing tug-o-war with a very respectable trout on a fine day last week while breaking-in the new skiff. Give me a call directly to book your next Texas Fly Fishing Adventure! Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

 

 

 

 

5wt Redfish

redfish, skinny, flats, guide, fishing, fly, saltwater, coast, texas, port aransas

Salty Bendo on a 5 wt hooked up to a nice 22inch redfish in 6 inches of water

So I get this call, last minute, and Matt says, “Can we go fishing tomorrow?”

“Absolutely!” I tell him. “Be at the dock at 9am. Tomorrow is a fine day to use the 5wt!”

And sure enough, while the main water bodies were frigid, getting skinny in my skiff was the key to finding the right water temperatures and those little lakes and creeks had loads of redfish in them.

redfish, skinny, flats, guide, fishing, fly, saltwater, coast, texas, port aransas

Uber skinny water redfish on 5wt couldn’t resist the chartreuse shrimp fly!

 

We didn’t find a single fish in water deeper than 12 inches. Matt did pretty work with his 5wt Scott rod and landed 9 redfish before 3pm! We got some very aggressive eats from these fish and the big ones we chased kept the excitement levels on top of the roof!

Forget about the weather and leave that up to your guide and it is sure he will put you on the fish!

Fall Run Update

“It has been crazy!” to say it in as few words as possible. Somehow I thought being a sleep deprived fly fisherman all these years would make being a sleep deprived parent easier but let me tell you folks… There is no comparison. October was by far the busiest month of the year. Thank you to all my clients who fished with me during a crazy month and through some wild weather patterns!

Cat and mouse was played with the weather (and fish) all season, some of us got out there on some fantastic days and others persevered through cloudy days. A few others have had to reschedule.

The fish are still very prevalent and I am seeing schools of fish again mostly black drum and redfish mix throughout the day. The most consistent and persistent casters on cloudy days are seeing good action with speckled trout.

The redfish have been upper slot fish and I am seeing at least one over slot red per day. There are plenty of ham sized black drum around as well. It is beginning to look like the weather trend is 4-5 days between cold fronts with the day or two after the front subsiding being the best weather days… the day or two before the next front are trending to be cloudy but we’ll see if this farmer’s forecast pans out!

I’ve got a few days in November available, particularly before and after the holiday. Give me a call to take your chance to roll the dice!

Lastly, here are some of the photos that actually developed into halfway decent shots

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Redfish Head First

 

 

 

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Hooked up again!

 

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I sight cast to this 40-inch heifer from the rock with a crab fly! Thanks to Bob for leadering the fish and shooting this photo!

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Tom & Jerry

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Rich Waldner’s Spoon fly tricked this 29-incher with Outdoor Journalist Phil Shook on the long rod and with the fly of choice!

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David worked tirelessly on some of the toughest fish I have encountered this year!

 

Running of the bulls

Bull, redfish, fly fishing, texas, gulf, coast

Bull redfish caught in 8inches of water.

Port Aransas has a good bull redfish run but most notably in the deep channels, inlets and passes. Nonetheless, they do come up onto the flats at certain times (like NOW)! Sight casting opportunities have really kicked up lately thanks to a lack of clouds and the winds are more favorable in the morning making it possible to hunt for these bigger redfish.

redfish, fly fishing, port aransas, rockport, flats, saltwater, guide

Redfish HOG

 

If you want to get on board and take your shots a these big redfish give me a call! I’ve got a feeling August is going to be great!

black drum, gasper goo, texas, fly fishing, guide, port aransas

Peek-a-boo Black Drum

September has some dates open also and October is mostly booked but I do still have a few dates open at that time too. Remember if you come down, plan your lodging far in advance as vacancy in town can be difficult.

Super stealth is key and having a boat that can take you way way back in the back is a must! It takes a bit of work polling into places like this but it is worth every ounce of the energy and time it takes to get in and out. Beulah’s new Opal Fly Rod (newest saltwater line up) delivers the fly well to these fish even in tight quarters. And if you need to take a long shot at a trailer or put some extra pressure on a bruiser, this rod has the backbone and finesse to get the job done. With a bit of care one can even manage to take multiple shots at fish and with proper presentation these fish are eating! Along with those hefty redfish in the super skinny water are also good numbers of schooled up black drum. They aren’t puppies and put up a good fight too.

Give me a call and lets go fishing! Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552

slough, creek, redfish, texas, port aransas

Big fish like to run these gauntlets right after the hookup

 

Post No Bills

Got out today with new client Tom after tropical storm Bill’s wrath had passed. The joke is that we got more wind/rain back in the month of May.

Return customer John had another good time before the storm with me chasing a few tailing/schooled up redfish on a super skinny tide.

fly fishing, sight, casting, redfish, texas, port aransas,

Sight casted in 6″ of water!

Today’s long story written quickly is that Tom got his first redfish and flounder on the fly today and congrats to him for putting in such great effort! Never giving up always brings the reward and the highlight was when Tom ALMOST caught a 20-lb jack crevalle on a white crease fly!

Tom first Redfish on the fly

Tom first Redfish on the fly

We were running between spots and a surface disturbance caught my eye off in the distance. I decided to swing wide and go in for a closer look and found out that a wolf-pack of jacks were finning the surface, their entire dorsal fins were sticking straight up above the water and about 20 of them were just cruising on the surface. Tom got the fly in front of one and it crushed the fly and had him so surprised we didn’t get a good hookset. Then Tom did it again and got the fly out front and this time we were sure to get a good hookset! The fish took off for the horizon and took close to 100yds of backing with him and the entire school too. But while the spool was spinning feverishly in reverse I heard a clanking on the deck. I look down and see something shiny and when I pick it up I realive it was spool knob! Dang! we yelle! This fight just got alot tougher with no way to reel in all that line with a big jack on the other end! So we used the boat motor to chase down the fish with Tom manually stripping in all the backing the fish made a hard run before we could get close and ended up popping the 15-lb tippet. All in all it was another gorgeous day on the flats with a big jack on the Hatch surprise!

hatch reels, fly fishing, port aransas, texas, coast

Something is missing in this photo

Winds and weather are steadily improving and the fish are beginning their staging patterns again to get back up skinny. Give me a call to book, I have a few week days open.

-Capt Kenjo 361-500-2552